


Tea Dance

by Severus_Snape_Mods



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Anal Sex, M/M, Oral Sex, Post-War, Rimming, Severus Snape Fest 2016, Slash, Snark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-13
Updated: 2016-01-13
Packaged: 2018-05-13 19:02:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5713564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Severus_Snape_Mods/pseuds/Severus_Snape_Mods
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Kingsley Shacklebolt searches out Severus Snape to make amends after the war, neither of them is prepared for what happens.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tea Dance

**Author's Note:**

> I must thank torino 10154 for providing a prompt that sparked my long dormant imagination to write it. To luvsev for cheerleading, betaing, and encouraging the smut, among other things, my undying gratitude and affection.  
> 

The man picked his steps carefully along the steep, rocky path that hugged a cliff overlooking the Adriatic. A harsh wind blew, and he was happy he had applied a stability charm to his feet or he wouldn’t have betted on being able to make it. _The old bastard picked this place wisely. Only a fool would try to find him here._ He snorted and muttered, “And apparently I am just such a fool.”

It had been six months since Severus Snape’s body had disappeared after the Battle of Hogwarts. The trio had told their story of what they had seen, but when a party was sent to retrieve his body, it was gone. Naturally, it being Snape, there was talk that he had somehow managed the impossible and survived, whether he’d taken some miracle potion to counteract Nagini’s venom or received help from some secret source.

Kingsley Shacklebolt, acting Minister of Magic, had no idea how Snape might have accomplished it, but he had faith that somehow Snape had. He’d spent months secretly following up personally on every tip or lead he encountered on where the man might be, and finally he’d wound up on this path that would hopefully lead him to Snape. Risking a glance down at the water churning below him, he hoped he’d make it in one piece. The place was heavily protected against any magical means of entry such as Apparating or flying by any means, hence his having to make his approach using the only access road available. As he neared the top of the hill, he saw the ramshackle, broken-down cottage that stood there. It leaned rather to one side, and looked quite abandoned, but Shacklebolt knew better. Even most magical folk would not be able to see past the impeccable spellwork that kept most people from seeing anything but a decrepit ruin, but Kingsley could see the slightest shimmer in the air around it, and as he approached, he could feel the magic shudder in protest. The air seemed to close around him, and it was as if he was walking through thick fog. It was all he could do to go on.

Only the thought of who was on the other side of that door kept him going.

At the door, he reached for the knocker and rapped it. There was no response. He rapped it again, then tried the door handle. Naturally, it was locked, and he jiggled it fiercely. He gave up on the knocker and pounded on the door. “Severus!” He jiggled the knob again. “I know you’re in there,” he said, wondering if it was true. He was suddenly mortified by the thought that he might be wrong and someone else would open the door.

Frustrated, he smacked his right palm against the door just as it swung open, nearly toppling a small, gray-haired woman. As she struggled to regain her balance, he grabbed her arm to steady her.

“Let me go!” she snarled and batted his hand away. “What is the meaning of this? Why have you come here making such a racket and disturbing my peace?”

“Is your master at home?” Kingsley asked, trying to peer beyond her into the shadowy depths of the cottage.

The tiny woman drew herself up to her full height. “I assure you, no man is the master of me.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you.” He stared at her shamelessly. “I was looking for someone, and you don’t seem to be him.”

“Obviously,” she said coldly.

“Mmm hmm.” Kingsley tapped his finger against his lower lip. “I said you don’t _seem to be_ ,” he said. “Is this some new variation of Polyjuice Potion so that it alters your voice as well?” he asked. “The Ministry could use something like that.”

“I don’t know what you are going on about.” 

“Come now, Severus, if you aren’t the housekeeper, then I know it’s you.”

The tiny woman stared at him, looking like an angry sparrow protecting her nest, but she didn’t reply.

“There are few wizards who could have constructed the wards protecting this place, and I know the whereabouts of nearly all of them. If you didn’t want me to recognize you, you should have used shoddier magic.” Kingsley winked.

He thought the tiny woman before him was about to explode, but then he realized she was morphing back into his … friend, for lack of a better word. “Ah, I see it doesn’t last as long as the standard Polyjuice Potion.”

“I’m still refining it,” Severus Snape said, his voice huskier than Kingsley remembered. “You should have been gone by now.”

The robes Severus pulled on over the clothes he’d been wearing did very little to hide the angry scar that marred his neck.

Kingsley stared in distress at the visible reminder of Severus’s injury. Distracted, he didn’t hear what Severus was saying to him. “Huh?” he said and immediately regretted his monosyllabic reply when he saw Snape’s lifted eyebrow. The man could do more to make a person feel a fool with that single lifted eyebrow than most could with an entire dictionary at their disposal.

“I asked again to what do I owe this …” Snape hesitated slightly before adding, “ _pleasure_?”

“Oh, yes.” Kingsley pulled his mind back to the task at hand. “The Ministry awards you a special pension for the part you played in bringing down Voldemort.” He fumbled in his breast pocket and pulled out the official letter and held it out to Severus.

Snape did not take the envelope, scowling at Kingsley’s outstretched hand as if it were a blasted-ended skrewt. “No, thank you.”

“What do you mean, no thank you?” He still held out the envelope.

“No has only the single customary meaning. Shouldn’t be too difficult even for you to sort out.” He moved to the door and held it open. “If that’s all, you can go now.”

“What?” Kingsley repeated again, staring at Snape in confusion. “I just got here.” The fierce wind invading the house reminded him how unwelcome he was. 

“So? It’s not as if I invited you to come. In fact, quite the opposite.”

“I came to tell you how sorry I am, how sorry we all are for misjudging you. The Order, the Ministry …”

“Well, then you’ve discharged your duty, and I’ll thank you not to trouble yourself about me again.”

“Me. Severus, I’m sorry.” Kingsley would have run his hand through his hair if he had any. Lacking that, he eyed Severus’s somewhat healthier tresses. “Can I at least get a cup of tea? It was no easy feat getting here.”

Severus rolled his eyes. “That is rather the point, isn’t it?” He shut the door rather more firmly than necessary. “Fine. A cup of tea.” He strode into the kitchen and put the kettle on the stove.

Kingsley followed him and stood hesitantly behind a chair. “May I sit?”

Severus shrugged, so Kingsley took that to mean “yes” and pulled out the chair.

“Not there,” Snape said. “I don’t want you hovering in here.” He gestured back to the other room. “I’ll bring the tea when it’s ready.”

Kingsley went back into the living room and looked around. He took a seat on the couch. As he’d suspected, the interior of the house was much more comfortable than the decrepit exterior had suggested. Indeed, he could see that the house was much larger than it had seemed and structurally appeared to be quite sound. The place was simple but comfortably appointed—one might even call it cozy, though Kingsley certainly had no intention of doing so in Severus Snape’s presence.

A few minutes later, Severus returned carrying the tea try. To Kingsley’s surprise, the tray included not just tea but sandwiches and cake. Kinsley’s eyebrows rose.

Severus said, “I was about to take tea myself and since you refused to leave …”

The words hung in the air between them like a dare, but Kingsley was hungry enough after the arduous trip to the top of the cliff not to care. 

“Well, whatever the reason, I am grateful,” he said as he took a sandwich. Severus poured a cup and quirked an eyebrow. “Sugar and milk, please,” Kingsley replied to Severus’s eyebrow. After he swallowed a bit of the sandwich, he observed, “I’m glad to see that you are living well.”

“As you can see, I have no need of whatever pity pension the Ministry cares to supply.” Severus took a sip of his tea and then set the cup down. “You needn’t let your conscience trouble you on my account.”

“Must you always be so prickly?” Kingsley asked.

“Must you always go sticking your nose into places where it doesn’t belong?” Severus responded.

Kingsley sighed. “I’m sorry. Maybe this was a mistake.”

Snape nodded. “Undoubtedly.” After a brief silence, he asked, “Does anyone else know about this? About … me?”

“No. People know I’ve had my suspicions, but I have kept your secret, Severus, and I will continue to keep it if that’s what you want. Personally, I would prefer that you rejoin the Wizarding world, but if you are happy here, I won’t take that from you.”

“Happy.” Snape snorted. “Content enough to let sleeping dogs lie, perhaps.” Severus picked up a knife. “Cake?” he asked, cutting a couple of generous slices and serving them each one.

“Then why stay here? Why not try to find some measure of happiness in your life?”

“Are you daft?” Severus asked quite seriously, putting down his fork.

“Possibly,” Kingsley replied, picking up his fork and taking a bite of the cake. “This is quite delicious, by the way.” He took another bite. “Orange spice, is it?”

“Thank you,” Severus replied, his tone rather prim. “And yes. It’s an old family recipe.”

“Severus.” Kingsley put down his fork and met Severus’s gaze. “I’ve missed you.” He saw the surprise flash in Severus’s eyes before he lowered the lids. “When I thought you were dead, I realized how horribly wrong that was. After everything you’ve done—”

Snape made a harsh sound in his throat. “What I’ve done—” He shook his head.

“You were invaluable in the struggle against Voldemort. The rest of it is in the past now, Severus. The present—” Kingsley cleared his throat. “What matters now is how we go on with our lives.” Kingsley met and held Severus’s gaze. “I’ve missed you. Now that I know you are alive, I … well.” He reached across the table and touched Severus’s hand lightly. “I don’t want to pretend it doesn’t matter. I don’t want to go on as before, without you.”

Severus looked down at Kingsley’s hand on his, but didn’t shrug it off. This gave Kingsley hope. “It’s been too long, Severus. Too many years of acting like we didn’t give a damn about each other because we had to. I’m tired of the charade.” He clasped Severus’s hand more tightly and drew him to his feet. “I’m hoping you’re tired of it too.”

He felt like a herd of horses was pounding their hooves into his chest as he leaned closer to Severus. Close enough to hear his heart pounding too, close enough to feel the heat radiating from his face. “Severus,” he whispered as he closed the distance between them and pressed his full lips against the other man’s unresisting mouth. “Severus,” he muttered again, sliding his tongue along the thin line of Severus’s lips, jubilant when they opened for him, and even more so when Severus’s tongue met his, shyly at first, then eagerly.

Maybe it was just that Snape had been holed up here alone for too long, but Kingsley didn’t care about the reason when Severus accepted his overtures and returned them with a passion that took him by surprise. Their hands roamed eagerly over each other’s bodies as Severus half-dragged him towards the bedroom, leaving a trail of clothes along the way.

They fell naked onto the bed, their lips and limbs entwined. Kingsley reveled in the sensation of skin upon skin, muscles taut and trembling against each other. He slid along the other man’s body, using hands and mouth to extend every offering of pleasure to atone for what Severus had suffered. With his mouth full of cock and his other hand playing with Severus bollocks, Kingsley licked a finger, then started to toy with Severus’s tight pucker.

Kingsley was not expecting it when Severus pulled away from him and pushed him face down on the bed. Severus grabbed his buttocks none to gently, and Kingsley had a momentary fear of where this might be going. He was even more surprised when he felt the soft wetness of Severus’s tongue caressing him in the most intimate of places, and he shivered, whether from the remnants of his nervousness or in anticipation he wasn’t quite sure.

He’d been aroused already, and now as Severus played with his arse, he pressed his cock into the bed coverings, hips undulating as he strove for more stimulation where he wanted it. Severus grabbed Kingsley’s hands in his and brought them to Kingsley’s cock, encouraging him to pleasure himself. As he did, Severus let go of his hands, and a short moment later, Kingsley felt one of those long, slim fingers insinuating itself into him. He wasn’t used to being in this position, but Severus’s ministrations with his hands and tongue eased the way, and with a sigh, his muscles relaxed and allowed the penetration. Kingsley grabbed his cock tighter as Severus began to move that finger inside him. Moments later, he soon added another, and soon enough, Kingsley found himself rocking his hips into Severus’s movements rather than away from him.

When Severus removed his fingers, Kingsley let out a little yelp. When he felt Severus’s cock striving to replace his digits, the yelp turned into a moan. Severus stroked his back, gentling him as he pressed slowly forward, and when Kingsley’s body accepted the intrusion, both men sighed together.

As surprised as Kingsley was by this turn of events, nothing surprised him more than the gentleness with which Severus proceeded. The man gave him a few moments to become accustomed to the sensation of being filled in this way before he began to slowly move inside him. One of Severus’s hands continued to stroke over his back, soothing him, while his other hand reached around and pinched his nipple.

“What do you have to say for yourself now, _Minister_?” The words rode to Kingsley’s ears on a current of warm breath.

Kingsley’s only answer was a moan as Severus pressed into him more deeply than seemed possible. Kingsley’s body was so confused. He felt like he wanted to explode, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to get there until the rest of his body caught up with his cock, and the rest of his body was completely centered on Severus’s hard prick sliding slowly in and out of him. Kingsley had never felt so vulnerable, and yet he trusted that Severus wouldn’t take advantage of his position. Finally, Kingsley felt himself settling into the sensations, feeling his own excitement building again.

Severus seemed to notice too and increased ever so slightly the speed and force with which he moved. Kingsley responded by bucking his hips into Severus’s. When Severus rewarded him with still more pressure and speed, Kingsley felt as if he was starting to come apart at the seams. He lost any semblance of control, writhing wildly against Severus and into the sheets, desperate for release. When Severus reached around to grasp Kingsley’s prick, he had a moment of surprise, and then all thoughts fled as waves of sensation rippled through his body. Kingsley muffled his moans of ecstasy in the bed coverings as Severus moved hard and fast inside him. Finally, Severus came in a flurry of sound and fury that reminded Kingsley of nothing so much as the storm that howled outside the window, then collapsed atop Kingsley, spent.

They lay like that for a few moments, still joined together in the most intimate way, their bodies reeling from the aftershocks. When Severus’s softening member slipped out of him, Kingsley couldn’t contain the little yelp that escaped his lips, and Severus laughed, a slightly mocking sound as he slipped off of him.

“I repeat, what do you have to say now, Minister?” Severus’s tone was much lighter, though that could be simply the effect of exhaustion and satiation, Kingsley supposed.

Kingsley rolled over to face the man. Severus lay on his side looking at him. When Kingsley met his gaze, he dropped his lids over his eyes, seeming to look at a spot on the bed sheets instead.

“That was … unexpected. And surprisingly satisfying,” Kingsley said. He wanted to reach out and touch Severus, but despite what had just happened between them, he wasn’t at all sure his touch would be welcome.

Severus still didn’t meet his gaze, but the tightness around his lips had softened and he looked almost smug.

“And you, Severus? Anything to add?” Kingsley asked. He usually felt in control in these sorts of situations, but he couldn’t read Severus at all.

“It was … satisfying.” He gazed off into the distance for a moment. Then he stood and pulled on his robes. “You can go now.”

“What?” Kingsley was hoping he hadn’t heard right.

Snape looked at him, exasperation plain on his face. “The meaning is clear. We are done here.”

“Fine.” Kingsley got out of the bed, making sure to stand tall and proud. He moved silently through the house, putting on his discarded items of clothing as he found them. He went into the kitchen and got a glass of water.

Snape stood watching him, and Kingsley lifted an eyebrow and held up the glass. “I assume you don’t mind?”

Snape waved a dismissive hand.

Kingsley glanced towards the living room where the remains of their tea sat, forgotten, and wished he’d eaten more. He was ravenous, but clearly that would have to wait. He started towards the front door, but was halted by Severus holding up a hand and opening the back door.

“You can go this way. I’ll lift the wards so you can Apparate.” He still wasn’t meeting Kingsley’s gaze.

“So you won’t return to the Wizarding world, then.” It wasn’t a question.

“Not at this time.”

Kingsley walked past him into the back garden and looked around. Vegetables, herbs, flowers, and trees all had a place here. “This is nice,” he said, surprise evident in his voice.

“Thank you. I—” Severus stopped and shrugged.

“Makes sense to have a certain amount of self-sufficiency up here, I suppose,” Kingsley said. He was stalling. This wasn’t how he wanted this to end, but he wasn’t sure what he could do. The man was so stubborn. “I suppose this is goodbye.”

Severus began the magic to modify the wards so Kingsley could Apparate, and Kingsley watched him, feeling emptier with each passing moment.

When he was done, Severus turned to Kingsley and met his gaze for the first time since they’d left the bedroom. “You know where I am now. You will keep my secret, won’t you?”

Kingsley nodded. “Of course, Severus. You’ve earned the right to have whatever life you choose. If you want this solitary life, I will respect that.”

“I—” Severus shook his head as if he were at a loss for words. Then he took a breath and said again, “You know where I am now.”

Kingsley nodded. “I swear, Severus, I’ll keep your secret.”

Severus nodded too, but Kingsley could see he was still struggling with something. Severus however remained silent, so finally Kingsley put out his hand to shake Severus’s. Severus ignored his outstretched hand, and Kingsley swallowed his disappointment. “Goodbye, then.” He turned to go.

“If you should wish to come for tea again, I am not averse to the idea.” The words came out in a rush.

Kingsley, who had been about to Disapparate, lost his balance and nearly fell, and Severus grabbed his arm to steady him. Kingsley noted with interest the faint flush creeping over Severus’s cheeks. “I’ll do that.” He smiled into Severus’s eyes, which for once were looking straight into his. With a joyful laugh, he pulled the man into his arms and planted a kiss on his slightly parted lips. “I’ll definitely do that.”


End file.
